Lynne told me that today would have been her father’s 92nd birthday. Her father was called Francis William Gamble. I am called William and I have a son is called William Francis. Lynne told me that when she first met my extended family in West Yorkshire, she was surprised to learn that my brother Peter’s wife was called Linda Gamble prior to her marriage to a Forde also. The coincidences did not stop there either, between Lynne and Linda. Both had brain surgery operations performed on them during the same year. Lynne had an aneurism and Linda had something similar.
Lynne also informed me that her sister, Luz Venables shares the same birthday as myself, November 10th. Here is another coincidence, Lynne of which you are unaware, and which you have just made me aware. The day your dear father died was the very same day, month, and year that Sheila and I first met in Haworth. December 15th, 2010.
When I met my wife, Sheila, I told her very early on in our relationship that she and I were destined to meet where and when we did. She told me that she had always believed in astrology and that the positions of planetary forces affected our journey through life and our destiny. I was prepared to accept this at face value as too many uncanny details had peppered my life such as myself as the oldest child of seven siblings being born to a mother who was also the oldest child of seven siblings. Even in matters of romance, my life remains a conundrum of coincidences, an enigma of sweet serendipity. A few examples will suffice here. My first and second wives had their birthdays on the same days of the year. The first love of my life (Jenny Downton in Canada) and the last love of my life (my wife Sheila) both shared the same birthday, November 29th.
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In mathematics, two angles that are said to coincide fit together perfectly. The word ‘coincidence’ does not describe luck or mistakes. It describes that which fits together perfectly. In essence, I have never believed in ‘coincidences’ and I cannot conceive of ‘meaningless coincidence’. I believe every coincidence is a message and a clue about a particular facet of our lives that requires our attention. As the Indian/American author and alternative medicine advocate Deepak Chopra remarked that in the magical universe there are no coincidences and there are no accidents. He advocates that nothing happens unless someone wills it to happen or it is meant to happen.
My favourite thought of all on coincidences comes from the greatest mind of all time, Albert Einstein who said, “Coincidence is God’s way of remaining anonymous.” Have a happy heavenly birthday, Francis William Gamble. Here is a song that is one hundred years old, 'Sonny Boy'.
Love and peace Bill xxx